Exercising at noon --- perhaps during your lunch break --- can have a positive effect on your immune system. Regular exercise relieves stress, helps with weight management and increases circulation. In a 2001 issue of its "Research Digest," the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports reports people that exercise even moderate amounts on a regular basis contract the common cold less often. Noon exercise can also help prevent or manage chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, increased cholesterol levels and type 2 diabetes.
Stress Relief
Noon exercise can boost the immune system by relieving stress. Increased stress can depress your immune system, weakening your defenses against the germs around you. Physical exercise on a regular basis prompts the release of mood-lifting, stress-reducing chemicals in your brain. When you exercise, even moderately, you typically begin to feel stronger and look more refreshed. Changes in your body and your outlook can help reduce stress and strengthen your immune system.
Weight Management
Being overweight or obese can weaken the immune system. Exercising at lunch can have a positive effect on your immune system in two ways. First, regular exercise boosts your metabolism and helps you lose the weight that may be negatively affecting your body's resistance to infection and chronic conditions like heart disease. Second, exercise often decreases the hunger and cravings that lead to overeating or eating the wrong kinds of foods. By using half your lunch hour to take a brisk walk, you will have less time to linger over your lunch, a behavior that almost always encourages overeating.
Better Circulation
Exercise at noon can improve your circulatory system. Riding a bicycle or having a circuit training session on your lunch hour can decrease triglycerides and increase the "good" cholesterol, or HDL, that limits or removes plaque from your arteries. This improvement in your circulatory system helps prevent heart attacks and strokes, and boosts your immune system by providing your entire body with the oxygenating blood it needs.
Improved Sleep
A good night's sleep is important to keeping your immune system well maintained. Not only does sleep help your body strengthen the immune response, it also helps you utilize vaccines properly, and fight off infections. If you have trouble falling asleep or remaining asleep throughout the night, noon exercise may benefit you. Noon exercise is advisable, since exercising near your usual bedtime may energize you so much you'll have trouble falling asleep.
